TwitFic

Every so often, Erin surprises me by asking me to, and I quote, “tell me a story.” Sometimes she does this in person, sometimes on the phone, sometimes — as she did earlier this week — on Twitter. This always takes me by surprise, and it isn’t always easy. It’s simply not always possible to simply turn out a story off the top of my head, and I usually feel bad when I’m unable to do it.

But this time, I started out a short story — a silly little thing, nothing of any real consequence — and I went a bit into it before she went home from work (where she was getting my Tweets) and went home. I thought nothing more of it until someone else asked me later that night — jokingly, of course — what happened at the end. Somehow, this emboldened me, and I thought it may be fun to try to tell a story in 140 character increments, reading the Tweetback as I went along. This is by no means a NEW idea, of course, this is just the first time I’M going to try doing it.

So I’m going to start over Erin’s story from earlier this week and see where it takes me. If you want to follow along over the next few hours on Twitter, I’m @BlakeMP. If you’re not a Twitterer but you’d still like to read it, I’ll be updating the story right here on this blog post every paragraph or so, so simply keep refreshing.

Okay, ready? Let’s give this a try…

STORY BEGINS:

There was once a dog and a polar bear, who set out together to tour all the great amusement parks of the world. While riding on one of the largest indoor roller coasters in Albuquerque, they suddenly found themselves whisked from the main ride and, through a side tunnel, began a plunge that would take them deeper and deeper underground.

Finally, after falling for what seemed like forever, they emerged in an enormous cavern full of gently glowing purple crystals. Their roller coaster car stopped in front of a huge crystal the shape of a giant egg. Before their eyes, the crystal split down the sides and cracked open, revealing an ancient, wizened Crystal King.

The dog and bear told the King how they came to be lost in his world, and the King nodded slowly. “I can return you to your surface world,” he creaked, “but first, you must give me aid of your own.” The king pointed to a tunnel far across the cavern, where a dozen of his Crystal Men were creeping in the distance. Crystals, you see, can change form, but only very slowly and over time. So the Crystal King and his Crystal People could not move any faster than a land-bound turtle of our surface world.

“Ages ago,” he explained, “I lost my crown in that tunnel. My crystal people have sought it for a long time, but we move so slowly I fear it shall never be found again. If you, who move even faster than the Meat People above, agree to help us find the crown, I will return you to your surface world.”

The dog and the polar bear quickly agreed, for they found the below-world of the Crystal king terribly warm and uncomfortable. Together, they marked past the slow-moving Crystal Men and into the caves. The Crystal Men glowed with a soft violet light, and once inside it was easy for the dog and bear to see that the cave took a precipitous plunge downward on their right. On the ground below were shards of purple crystal and powder, the remains of foolish Crystal Men who ventured too close to the edge.

The polar bear gripped the edge of the cliff and lowered himself into the void. Before he let go, the dog climbed down his friend’s back and the two of them dropped safely to the stone floor. Together, they began to explore the massive web of caves. After many hours of wandering through the maze-like cavern, the dog and the bear saw a bright red glow, far more intense than the glimmering violet that surrounded them amongst the Crystal Men. Sitting on a ledge far above them was a crown of purest gold with a ruby the size of an apple set neatly in the helm.

“This must be what the king has lost,” said the bear, “but how shall we retrieve it? It is too far to reach.”

The clever dog had an idea. He told his friend to crouch down, with his head low to the floor and his large back end pointed towards the ledge. The dog backed up and got a running start, charging towards his friend. Using the bear as a ramp, the dog raced down his back and up into the air. He caught the ledge with his front paws and nearly fell away. The nimble dog managed to pull himself onto the ledge, and he picked up the crown in his mouth.

“We have the crown,” the bear said, “but how can you come down from the ledge without hurting yourself? The rocks are too jagged and steep for me to wait at the bottom and catch you.” The dog did not know how he would descend from the ledge, but before he could say so, an array of sparks began to sputter from the crown. A ball of ruby light the same shape as the jewel in the crown appeared around his body. The ball of light began to float in the air and the startled dog almost barked in fright. It is fortunate he did not, however, for if he had released the crown the light would have disappeared and the dog would have been dashed upon the rocks below.

The ball of light drifted up through the stone ceiling, passing through it as if it were insubstantial as a cloud. For long moments, the dog was in the darkness of solid rock, then the ball broke through the throne room of the Crystal King. The dog released the crown and the globe of light vanished. He had no hands with which to place the crown upon the king’s head, but the crystal man was so overjoyed at seeing his crown again that he moved with great swiftness, at least for a man of crystal. After several minutes, he placed the crown on his head. In a flash of light, his crystal form began to melt, turning into a sort of thick, rubbery flesh. He was not quite the same as a man of the surface, but he could again move like an ordinary man.

In the cavern beyond the throne room, each of the Crystal King’s subjects underwent the same transformation, becoming men and women of flesh once again. The king clapped his hands in delight. “Friend dog,” he said, “you have restored my people. How may I repay you?”

“Please, your majesty,” the dog said, “My friend the bear remains in the caverns below.”

“Then we shall find him,” the former Crystal King said. He sent his people out into the caverns, and with their renewed swiftness, they soon found the bear and returned him to the throne room.

The King offered to throw a grand celebration for the two heroes, but they politely declined. “You are used to this below-world heat, your majesty,” said the bear, but we are not. And our fur is making it almost unbearable. Please, send us home.”

The king returned them to their roller coaster car, which he had his people turn so it faced the opposite way on the tracks. Bidding his new friends farewell, the King used his magic to push the car with such force that it rolled back up on the tracks, through the many layers of the Earth, and finally coming to a rest at the amusement park above the surface.

“How did you like your ride?” asked the attendant.

“I have visited amusement parks across the country,” said the bear, “but this is the longest roller coaster I have ever ridden.”

-FIN-

(Feedback, as always, is appreciated. Post your comments here, or e-mail BlakeMPetit@gmail.com.)